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Philippines: Estrada Arrested For Graft
MANILA, April 16 (News Agencies) - Philippine ex-president Joseph Estrada was arrested Monday for corruption and perjury, but he swiftly posted bail to avoid going to jail, court officials said.
Looking forlorn and tired, Estrada surrendered himself at the office of the court sheriff where he was held for 90 minutes based on an arrest warrant issued by an anti-graft court.
He went through the humiliating procedure of having his fingerprints taken and was warned not to jump bail or flee the country.
The court allowed him to return to his suburban Manila mansion after he posted bail of 40,000 pesos ($800) pending hearing of his case at the anti-graft court on May 17th.
Had he failed to post bail he would have been thrown in jail alongside ordinary criminals, court officials said.
Estrada, ousted in a popular uprising that installed vice-president Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo as president, is facing eight charges of corruption involving more than $80 million. All but one of the cases - for plunder - allows bail to be posted.
The arrest Monday was for charges that he diverted 130 million pesos in tobacco excise taxes in 1998 and misrepresented his assets in official documents.
Court officials said Estrada, a former movie star, deposited an additional 113,000 pesos in bail with the court for the other cases so that he would not have to surrender himself when further arrest warrants were issued.
A division of the court handling the case of plunder against him has yet to issue a ruling. Plunder, or large-scale corruption, is punishable by death and does not permit bail.
Estrada, who turns 64 on Thursday, was taken in a van accompanied by his wife, two sons and a posse of bodyguards and police to the court sheriff's office.
He ignored questions from the press as his lawyers and bodyguards blocked television cameras from zeroing in on him.
Dressed in a traditional Filipino "barong" shirt, Estrada still wore his trademark wristband emblazoned with the presidential seal.
His lawyer, Raymond Fortun, said Estrada would "obviously enter a plea of not guilty" when he faced the court on May 17th.
Monday was the first time a warrant of arrest was issued by the judiciary against a former Philippine president.
Fortun said Estrada had been expecting the arrest and that he was not worried about it. "We have expected this to happen since last week," he said.
Estrada's eldest son, Jose Ejercito, said his father was at home and appeared relaxed when he heard that a warrant of arrest against him had been issued.
"He was even smiling when I talked to him about the case," the junior Estrada said.
The arrest Monday followed a furious legal fight waged by the former leader, who alleged that he was illegally forced from office less than halfway into a six-year term due to end in mid-2004.
But the Supreme Court turned down all of his appeals, ruling that he was no longer president and thus was not entitled to presidential immunity.
Dozens of his supporters, meanwhile, barricaded Estrada's mansion to protect their idol as news of his arrest order broke.
"We will stay here to protect him, we will not leave even if we are killed," said one supporter.
Estrada's surrender Monday "is just a sign that he will abide by the law and that he believes that the legal system can be just and fair to him," added opposition party spokesman Crispin Remulla.
"It is just a cruel and anomalous thing," he said.
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